Dowry system has always been prevalent in the society in
India. Quite interestingly the journey of dowry has also transformed its form
with the passage of time. We say that women upliftment has taken place in the
society and they now stand shoulder to shoulder with their men counterparts so
has the elevation of dowry.
Origin of dowry was through the times when a girl used to
get married and has to go to the other house. Her parents used to give her all
the things associated with the basic amenities (we will discuss about the
gold/jewellery part later on). She used to be the homemaker and take care of
the house, doing usual stuff to make the life of their counterparts as
comfortable as possible. The basic purpose was as a new member used to add on
in the family she used to bring with herself the supporting things to lead a
comfortable life. Now as the liberalization of women took place the face of
dowry also started changing. Now the things which once used to be the basic
amenities increased gradually not from the bride side but the groom wants more
things to make “THEIR” life comfortable. Slowly and slowly it started to become
a burden on the bride side. Crime cases in dowry took a leap. Parents of the
girl child started to feel girl as a burden. Now the empowerment of women
through education came to the forefront. A greater section of the society
wanted their girl child to be educated.
Now the race for education began for the girl child. However
it did not percolate through all sections of the society, it was handful of
middle class and upper middle class section of society. In the place where
crime for girls is always on the rise especially from the safety point of view
it was a difficult task for parents to teach a girl in comparison to the boy. But
still girls started making their mark on the society. Parents started upbringing
their girls in the same manner as a boy. Now the equation for marriage became a
bit difficult educated girl means an educated boy. Does educated boy means
elevated dowry? Rates are being set for the boy as per their education. Is this
the justice to the education of a girl?
In India number of dowry cases is on the rise. According to
the newspaper Telegraph “Women is killed every hour in India over dowry”. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/10280802/Woman-killed-over-dowry-every-hour-in-India.html
If a girl is working and well educated that becomes a big
bonus so in these type of cases the dowry takes a different form. Usually the
other side does no demand money or kind for themselves but in order to glorify
themselves wants this glitter to be shown to their relatives. This has been
very well portrayed in our daily soaps on various channels. The best narration
which I could find was this one from a soap called " Jee Le Zara" on SET. the conversation between the elders for finalizing the marriage is worth watching. This is just one case which is shown.
The big question is when will this end? All girls, whether educated or uneducated,
whether financially independent or dependent, remain untouched with this dragon
of dowry. This is extremely ridiculous for the society and the future of women
in India.
